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The pale horseman

by Cornwell, Bernard.

Format: Book on CD 2006
Availability: Available at 1 Library 1 of 1 copy

Available (1)
Location Collection Call #
Western Allegheny Community Library Audiovisual CDBOOK CORNWELL
Location  Western Allegheny Community Library
 
Collection  Audiovisual
 
Call Number  CDBOOK CORNWELL
 
 

Summary

The Danes have been defeated but the English triumph is not fated to last long. The Danish Vikings quickly invade and occupy three of England s four kingdoms and all that remains of the once proud country is a small piece of marshland, where Alfred and his family live with a few soldiers and retainers, including Uhtred, the dispossessed English nobleman who was raised by the Danes. Uhtred has always believed that given the chance, he would fight for the men who raised him and taught him Viking ways. But when Iseult, a powerful sorceress, enters his life, he is forced to consider feelings he s never confronted before and discovers, in his moment of greatest peril, a newfound loyalty and love for his native country and ruler. "

Published Reviews
Booklist Review: "At the conclusion of Cornwell's best-selling The Last Kingdom 0 (2005), Uhtred, the dispossessed son of a slain Saxon nobleman raised by Danish warriors, had reluctantly rejoined King Alfred's beleaguered forces in the rapidly dwindling kingdom of Wessex. Although the Danes had already conquered the kingdoms of East Anglia, Northumbria, and Mercia, Alfred, with an able assist from Uhtred, had stalwartly fended off the Viking invasion. Uneasily allied to the cerebral Alfred, the more vigorous Uhtred is plagued by divided loyalties as the Saxons struggle to maintain a toehold against the mighty Viking war machine. Taking refuge in a boggy marshland, the ragtag remnants of the Saxon army desperately attempt to regroup. Two vastly different heroes--Alfred and Uhtred--stand between the Danes and total annihilation of the Saxon culture. Further complicating the matter is the fact that Uhtred faces a moral dilemma when he realizes he must choose between allegiance to the king he has grown to admire and loyalty to Ragnar, his much-loved foster brother. Cornwell, the author of the excellent Sharpe 0 series ,0 displays his usual flair for providing action-packed martial history populated by a diverse array of realistically drawn characters. A crackerjack adventure tale from a master of the craft. --Margaret Flanagan Copyright 2005 Booklist"
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Publisher's Weekly Review: "Outnumbered Saxon forces continue battling Danish invaders in this rousing sequel to the bestselling The Last Kingdom. It's A.D. 877, and the dispossessed Northumbrian noble Uhtred has just routed the Danes in a battle at Cynuit in southern England. Logically, Uhtred should now ally himself with Alfred, whose Wessex kingdom alone has successfully resisted Danish control. But Uhtred sees a better chance of recovering his lost estate if he finds a way to join the Danes, who raised him and whose simple life of "ale, women, sword, and reputation" he finds more congenial than Alfred's Christian piety and military caution. But when the Danes invade Wessex, Uhtred's loyalties are further divided. His Celtic mistress foretells victory for Alfred, but Uhtred can scarcely believe that the bedraggled king, camped in isolated marshes with a handful of supporters, can repel the invaders and unite England. Yet pride grows in Uhtred: "I understood that among the Danes I was as important as my friends, and without friends I was just another landless, masterless warrior. But among the Saxons I was another Saxon, and among the Saxons I did not need another man's generosity." Uhtred demonstrates his newfound patriotism in the book's climactic battle at Edington. Filled with bawdy humor, bloodlust, treachery and valor, this stirring tale will leave readers eager for the next volume in this Alfred the Great series. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved"
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Additional Information
Series The Warrior chronicles/Saxon stories
#1 - The Last Kingdom
#2 - The Pale horseman
#3 - Lords of the north
#4 - Sword song
#5 - The Burning land
#6 - Death of kings
#7 - The Pagan lord
#8 - The Empty throne
#9 - Warriors of the storm
#10 - The Flame bearer
#11 - War of the wolf
#12 - Sword of kings
#13 - War lord
Subjects Alfred, -- King of England, -- 849-899 -- Fiction.
Vikings -- Fiction.
Great Britain -- History -- Alfred, 871-899 -- Fiction.
Great Britain -- History -- Anglo-Saxon period, 449-1066 -- Fiction.
Audiobooks.
Publisher Hampton, NH :Sound Library/BBC Audiobooks America,2006
Edition Unabridged ed.
Contributors Sellwood, Tom.
BBC Audiobooks America.
Participants/Performers Read by Tom Sellwood.
Language English
Notes Compact disc.
Complete & unabridged.
Title and description from container.
Sequel to: The last kingdom.
Description 12 audio discs (approximately 14 hrs. 35 min.) : digital ; 4 3/4 in
ISBN 079273887X
Other Classic View